Sri Lanka top Players to Skip SLPL Twenty20 2011

Sri Lanka's top players will skip largest part of the matches in the Sri Lanka premier league T20, dealing another blow to the struggling event, an official said Tuesday.

Captain Tilakaratne Dilshan, Ex-captain Kumar Sangakkara and veteran Mahela Jayawardene, all-rounder Angelo Mathews and Lasith Malinga are among local players expected to miss most of the 10-day tournament starting Thursday.

"The players will likely choose which matches they want to play, because they are being rested for the upcoming Australian tour," Sri Lanka Cricket media manager Brian Thomas told AFP.

The Australian team arrives in Colombo on July 30 to play three Test match Series, five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 games during their tour that ends on September 20.

Sri Lankan Premier league postponed to Aug 2012

The controversy ridden SLPL scheduled for August 2011 has been postponed to Aug, 2012. Sri Lanka will have a domestic T20 league this year but there will be no foreign players playing in it.

The decision follows the withdrawal of Indian players from the SLPL. The BCCI had denied its players permission to play in the league after it feared problems arising due to contract disputes. Speculations are also rife that former Indian T20 league (IPL) chairman, Lalit Modi, had a part in the SLPL but these suggestions have been strongly denied by SLC and Modi himself.

With no Indian players participating in the league there were no broadcasters for the league in India. Revenues from broadcast rights are usually a huge source of revenue and SLPL were hurt badly as they lost out on it.

The SLC committee that had created the tournament was disbanded by the country's sports ministry recently. The new SLC committee came to an agreement with the organizers, Somerset Entertainment ventures, to postpone the event to next year.